


Together

by ennedepaix



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-09
Updated: 2012-07-09
Packaged: 2017-11-09 12:20:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/455388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ennedepaix/pseuds/ennedepaix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Draco didn’t care about any of it. At least, that’s what he had been telling himself all these years.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Together

It was ten past seven on a crisp October morning. Draco stood, his bare feet damp with dew from the grass. His toes were millimetres from the edge of the wooden berth. He had not ventured this far into the grounds of the Manor for years. He wasn’t sure why; after all, it was one of the few spots on the estate that held happy memories for him. 

He remembered the kindly smile of the old groundskeeper who would take him out on the rickety wooden rowboat. Draco knew Lucius didn’t approve of the amount of time his young son spent idling on the small lakes and canals that criss-crossed the outer reaches of the estate. Lucius preferred to have him out of the way, however, so he kept quiet and left his son to do as he pleased. Feed the ducks, try and catch dragonflies, pick water-lilies to give to his mother.

The groundskeeper was long gone. Lucius decided house-elves could manage the grounds well enough and sent the man on his way. Draco had disagreed and, he knew, his mother had, too. The grounds became overly manicured, so neat and tidy as to look as if the plants and trees were fake. Draco thought it a great shame. The house-elves only maintained the parts of the estate where Lucius ventured. The rest, including the area in which Draco stood now, was left to its own devices.

Draco took a step onto the dilapidated mooring and winced slightly when it creaked beneath his weight. The wood settled into silence and Draco watched his breath mist in front of him. Birdsong filtered through the dense trees and a muffled crack disturbed the gentle rustle of the turning autumn leaves. Draco knew what he would hear in the next few moments.

“Draco! Where are you? Draco, I’m worried!”

Draco sighed and drew his wand. He sent sparks into the air before renewing the warming charm that warded the chill from his bare feet. A couple of minutes later, he heard footsteps.

“Hello, Potter,” Draco murmured without turning around.

“I woke up and you were gone,” Harry said. There was no accusation in his tone, just concern, and Draco realised he had left the note on the sideboard in the hall, in full view.

“You read the letter.”

Harry laid his hand on Draco’s back. “The one from your mother? Yeah. Sorry. It was just sitting there.”

“It’s fine.”

“Are you all right?” Harry asked. Draco turned and stepped closer to him, stepped back onto the grass.

“I’m not sure,” he admitted. “I don’t care that she wants to sell the Manor. I don’t care about the house or any of the outbuildings. I don’t care about the formal gardens, the stables or the pavilion. _This_ , though…”

“I’ve never seen this before.”

“It’s the only part of this place I care about. It’s the only part with good memories; the only part where I felt like I had a proper childhood. I used to go rowing with the groundskeeper in a little wooden boat. We’d try and catch fish sometimes. I think, maybe, I’d like to do that again. Just float around and let the world pass by.”

Harry’s hand slipped into Draco’s and Draco leant his head on Harry’s shoulder. Harry smelt of heat and sweat, a remnant of their unhurried lovemaking several hours earlier. 

“Sounds nice,” Harry agreed.

“Yes, it does.”

There was a silence for a few moments but Harry eventually spoke,

“This is a nice bit of land, with the water and the woods.”

“Yes.”

“You know, I don’t have a clue about boats but I know a few people who know about building houses.”

“Harry, what are you suggesting?” Draco asked quietly.

“I’m sure your mother wouldn’t mind keeping a bit of the land back,” Harry responded, too nervous about what he was suggesting to look Draco in the eye. “If you talk… If _we_ talk to her, I’m sure she would let us have this bit of land.”

“You want to build a house with me.”

“Yes.”

“You want… to live with me. On the Malfoy estate.”

“I want to live with you. I want to build a house for us on a bit of land you clearly love, regardless of whether or not it used to belong to some arsehole called Lucius Malfoy.”

“What about… the things that happened here?”

“Nothing happened _here_ , Draco. We’re miles from the Manor.”

“I suppose.” Draco paused. “You really want to live with me?” 

Harry smiled and met Draco’s eyes again. “Yes. Draco, we practically live together already. I know we still have our own homes but when was the last time we spent a night apart unless it was for work?”

“I don’t know. It must be at least six months.”

“Yeah. So, add that to how much I love you and think. Is it really so surprising that I want to live with you?”

“I still don’t think I’ve got used to the part where you love me so… yes, it is a little bit surprising.”

“You’re daft, sometimes,” Harry said fondly. He pressed a kiss to Draco’s cheek and squeezed his hand.

“I must be; I fell in love with you, after all,” Draco replied, finally smiling. Harry just laughed and Draco said, “I’ll owl Mum. I’ll ask her to come to dinner and we can… talk to her together.”

“Yeah.” Harry’s smile was bright and open. “Together.”

_\- fin -_

**Author's Note:**

> Written for enchanted-jae’s July JMDC. Written in about three-quarters of an hour; no beta.


End file.
